Iran: Attack on Rushdie a US plot, says newspaper

Europe 1 with AFP 5:53 p.m., August 14, 2022

The violent attack on Salman Rushdie is a plot by the United States which "probably wants to spread Islamophobia in the world", an Iranian newspaper said on Sunday, while there has been no official reaction from the Republic so far. Islamic.

Threatened with death since a "fatwa" from Iran in 1989, a year after the publication of "Satanic Verses", the British naturalized American writer was stabbed a dozen times on Friday in New York State (north- East of the United States), an attack that outrages in the West, but which is welcomed by extremists in Iran and Pakistan.

"Perhaps a young Muslim, who was not born when Salman Rushdie wrote his satanic book, wanted revenge on him",

A hypothesis supported by several newspapers

The assailant Hadi Matar, a 24-year-old American of Lebanese origin, was born several years after the publication of "Satanic Verses".

This satirical novel is considered by the most rigorous Muslims as blasphemous with regard to the Koran and the Prophet Muhammad.

The Javan newspaper also evokes the hypothesis of a plot hatched by the Americans: "Another scenario is that the United States probably wants to spread Islamophobia in the world", adds Javan.

For the daily Kayhan, "the attack on Salman Rushdie showed the weakness of US intelligence and demonstrated that even strict security measures cannot prevent attacks".

"The attack on Salman Rushdie also proves that exacting revenge on criminals on American soil is not difficult. Now (ex-President Donald) Trump and (ex-Secretary of State Mike) Pompeo will feel most threatened," adds Kayhan.

The newspaper brandishes a threat against these two former officials, who are "the main perpetrators of the assassination of General Qassem Soleimani", eliminated during an American raid in Iraq in 2020. He was the head of the Quds forces, operations branch exteriors of the Revolutionary Guards, Iran's ideological army.

No reaction from the Iranian authorities

The Iranian authorities have so far not reacted to the attempted murder of the 75-year-old writer, who is still hospitalized in serious condition.

"I do not see the hand of the Iranian state in this attack, but it is certain that it will increase the mistrust of the United States vis-à-vis Iran," Thierry Coville told AFP. expert on Iran and researcher at the Institute of International and Strategic Relations (IRIS).